Arch brick



Aug. 28, 1934. J. P. NEFF 1,971,693

ARCH BRICK Filed Aug. 17, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet l Aug. 28, 1934. J. P. NEFF 1,971,693

ARCH BRICK Filed Aug. 17, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEY Patented Aug. 28, 1934 ARCH BRICK JohnP. Nerf, East Orange, N. 1., assignor to American Arch Company, New York, corporation of Delaware N. Y., a

Application August 17, 1931, Serial No. 557,607

4 Claims. (Cl. 110-87) This invention relates to locomotive arch brick and is partciularly concerned with that type of brick which may be defined as the lean-to type of brick, i. e., a brick which is supported at its lower end upon a supporting member of some kind, generally a circulation tube, and which inclines upwardly and outwardly from said support to leanagainst an adjacent wall in alocomotive fire box. Bricks of this character are very common inpresent practice between the outermost circulation tubes and the side sheets of the fire box, and for illustrative purposes the present invention is described as embodied in a side brick for locomotive fire box arches. It should be understood, however, that a brick embodying the present invention might be equally well employed between a supporting member such as a circulation tube and the adjacent side wall of an internal water leg, or, indeed,in any location where similar conditions exist.

The'principal object of the invention may be said to reside in the provision of a brick of the character described which can be inverted and which when inverted is adapted to span unequal distances between points-of support so as to materially reduce the number of brick patterns or sizes which may be necessary in making an installation. For example, many modern locomotives have fire boxes in which the side sheets taper inwardly and upwardly as well as forwardly and outwardly so that the space between the side sheets at the mud ring is greater than the space at the crown sheet, and the distance between sheets is greater at the flue sheet than it is at the I back sheet, in which latter-sheet is located the customary fire door opening. The amount of taper in either case is not always very pronounced, but nevertheless is generally suflicient to require the use of a good many patterns or sizes of side bricks. As stated, it is one of the principal objects of the invention to provide a construction which will reduce the number of patterns necessary to make an installation.

A further object of the invention is to provide a v brick of the character described which, when inverted, will span unequal distances between points of support and which, at the same time, is so constructed that inversion of the brick will not substantially alter the incline'of either the top or 1; the bottom face of the brick. In other words, a

substantially uniform arch setting can be obtained with my improved brick with practically fifty percent fewer brick sizes than would ordinarily be necessary.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide a brick having the foregoing characteristics which will, at the same time, be extremely rugged in character and not easily broken in service. 1

How the foregoing objects, together with such other objects as are incident to the invention or which may appear hereinafter, are attained, is illustrated in the preferred form' in the accompanying drawings, wherein- Figure 1 is a cross section through a standard locomotive fire box arch showing my improved type of lean-to brick as applied to the two outermost circulation tubes of a series of four tubes in position to span the distance from such tubes to the side sheets.

Figure-Zis an enlarged side elevation of one embodiment of my improved brick illustrating certain details of the construction, the view being dimensioned and drawn to scale.

Figure 3 is a comparative view illustrating my improved brick in both of its positions in order to show the manner in which it spans unequal distances. between points of support; and

Figure 4 is a composite view showing my improved brick in both of its positions, one position being superimposed over the other, and one being shown in full lines and the other in dotted lines in order to illustrate the fact that my improved construction does not substantially alter the incline of the top and bottom faces of the brick when inverted to span unequal distances between points of support.

In Figure 1 is shown a cross section through a locomotive fire box arch spanning the distance between the side sheets 5, the arch being supported upon a series of four circulation tubes 6 with three rows of M or middle bricks 7 and a row of lean-to side bricks 8 at each side- Figure 2 illustrates in detail the specific construction of my improved brick, but I wish it-to be distinctly understood that it is not necessary to limit the present invention to a brick of the exact size or shape indicated by the dimension figures, such figures being placed upon the draw ings simply as a guide to show one way in which a brick of this character may be constructed in order to incorporate the features of the present invention.

By examining the drawings, it will be seen that my improved lean-to brick is preferably pro vided at its lower end with a symmetrical support engaging surface 9 which, in the present embodiment, takes the form of a socket of slightly larger radius than the radius of the tubes 6 upon which its rests. The opposite or upper end of the brick is of blunt nose-like construction which is asymmetrical with respect to the longitudinal plane 10 (see particularly Figure 2) which divides the brick into two substantially equal parts, the plane 10 passing through the axis of the tube 6. In

a other words, the nose is somewhat off center.-

be seen that the bulk of the nose end of the brick V in one of its positions lies abeve thet plane l0; and in the other position below 'the plane 10,. f

When it lies above, the brick will span the lesser distance 13; and when itlies below, the greater distance 14. However, as shown by; the ;com posite view of Figure 4, the construction ofthe brick is of such a nature as not to affect or alter to any substantial degree the general direction of theincline of the, upper and lower faces of'the brick regardless of the position in which itis placed. This -is-an importantfeature ofthe invention because-it makes possible a substantially uniformsetting of-the bricka or, stated in other bodying. my improved characteristics will be more r in orderto'liner-them up evenly, with the'result words, an arch. application having substantially uniform facings, if r 3 r The advantages'which flowfrom a brick emfully appreciated from the following: In present practice with side bricks of-the types which are now customary, the workmen who-make the installations are accustomed to chip, the :side' bricks that quite frequently thefront bricks of an, arch, where the fire box is wider than it is at the back, are set at an angleqwhichg isconsiderably, less than the desired angle so that they have ,a tendency to. wedge the arch tubes outofhlinement. In other words, the workmen, instead of using the necessary number of patterns to buildup an arch having substantially uniform top and bottom 1 faces, adopt the expedient of chipping away por-- tions of the brick in order to build up an installation which has substantially uniform top and bottom faces. 1 l

With the present invention, however, this, difli.

culty is largely overcomebecause the workmen,

bysimply invertingthey brick, can build up .an arch which has substantially uniform toprand bottom faces. Therefore, as-the front of the fire box, is approached the angle at which the brick is inclined upwardly will not become so small asto create atendency for thebrick to wedge;

'- down between, the tube and the-side sheet and 7 force the'tube out of 'alinement.

that on the other. In the present instance, radii of inches and 84 inches respectively are used.

The curve of smaller radius merges into the blunt portion 11 and that of larger radius into the sur- 7 face 12. It will be understood, of course, that the particular configuration of the brick shown in the present embodiment is not essential to thejinvntion as many other sizesand shapes could be designed any one of which may be made so as to incorporate the features of the present invention. In other words, the particular size and shape illustrated, while representing a preferred embodiment of the invention, is not to be construed as limiting the scope of the appended claims."

It willbeseen that the brick is of extremely rugged construction and that substantially no strength is sacrificed by constructing the blunt nose like end of the brick in the manner illustrated. Breakage, therefore, is not liable to occur and the brick is, atall'times firmly seated in its position, regardless of which face is uppermost.

What I claimisf-e 1. An invertible brick having its upper end formed as, a rounded nose of asymmetrical curvature and with. the opposite faces struckupon radii of unequal length.

2. An invertiblebrick of'pthe-lean-to"- type having its upper end formed as a rounded nose of asymmetrical curvature and with the opposite faces struck upon radii of, unequal length, the surface of lesser radius mergingwith the nose in its region of sharper curvature, and the surface of greateriradius,merging. with the nose in its region oflesser curvature;

3. Aninvertiblewbrick of the lean-to type characterized by the fact thatits upper or leaning endis. of asymmetrical form toprovide a noselike projection, having a portion adjacent one face of the brick whichrprojects outwardly endwise of the brick a greater distance than the portion adjacent the opposite. face of the brick whereby the brickwhen inverted willspan unequal distances between points of support.

. 4. A side brick'for locomotive fire box arches of the type which is adapted to rest at its inner end upon a circulation member and to incline upwardly and outwardly toward and to lean against the side sheet of the box, said brick having'. acirculation member engaging :face at its inner end and an: asymmetricalside sheet contacting nose 'at the other end, and said nose having a portion adjacent one face of the brick which projects outwardly endwise of the brick a greater distance than the portion adjacent the opposite face of the brick whereby the brick when inverted will span unequal distances between points of support. a

. JOHN PQNEFFQ of the lean-to type 

